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OAT PILAF

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1½ cups chopped red onion (about 1 medium)

1 (2-inch) stick cinnamon

1 bay leaf

¼ teaspoon fine sea salt

1½ cups whole oat berries (groats)

2 cups low-sodium chicken broth

½ cup finely chopped soft dried apricots, preferably Turkish

1 tablespoon sweet Marsala wine

CHICKEN LIVERS, AND TO FINISH

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, or more as needed

1 pound chicken livers, trimmed, patted dry, and cut into pieces (about 1½ inch square)

Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon plus 3 teaspoons finely chopped fresh sage

¼ cup sweet Marsala wine

¼ cup low-sodium chicken broth

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

2 pinches cayenne pepper

1 To make the oat pilaf, heat the olive oil in a 4-quart heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat until shimmering. Add the onion, cinnamon stick, bay leaf, and salt and cook, stirring frequently, until the onion starts to turn golden brown at the edges, about 8 minutes. Add the oats and cook, stirring, until the kernels become shiny and start to crackle, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the broth (it might splatter!) and bring to a boil, scraping the bottom to release any browned bits. Decrease the heat to maintain a simmer, cover, and cook until the liquid is absorbed and the oats are tender but still slightly chewy, 40 to 45 minutes. Remove and discard the cinnamon stick and bay leaf.

2 While the oat pilaf simmers, place the apricots in a small bowl and drizzle with the Marsala wine. Set aside, stirring once or twice.

3 To make the chicken livers, start when the oats are almost done. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat until it shimmers. Add half the chicken livers and season them with salt and pepper. Cook until the livers are nicely browned on the bottom, about 3 minutes, covering the pan with a splatter guard or partially covering with a lid. Using tongs, turn the livers and cook until browned but still pink in the center (cut into one to check), 2 to 3 more minutes. Transfer the livers to a plate and repeat with the second batch, adding a bit more oil if the pan gets dry. Stir in 1 tablespoon and 1 teaspoon of the sage. Add the Marsala wine and the chicken broth, together with the first batch of liver and any juices. Simmer, uncovered, for 1 to 2 minutes to thicken the sauce slightly, scraping the bottom of the pan to release any browned bits. Add the butter and wait until it has melted, and then taste the sauce for salt and pepper and adjust.

4 While the sauce simmers, stir the Marsala-infused apricots with their liquid into the oats. Season with the cayenne. Taste for salt and adjust.

5 To finish, spoon the livers with a bit of the sauce over the oat pilaf. Sprinkle with the remaining 2 teaspoons sage and serve at once, with more black pepper on the side if you like.

TO GET A HEAD START: The oat pilaf, as in step 1, can be made up to 3 days ahead—it will, however, lose a bit of its nice chewiness. Gently rewarm over medium heat, loosening the clumped oats with a wooden spoon and stirring a few times, and adding a scant ½ cup of water or broth before proceeding as described in step 4.

TO MAKE IT VEGETARIAN: Omit the chicken livers and the sage and use vegetable broth (instead of chicken broth). Dice 1 large red bell pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Cook the bell pepper together with 1 teaspoon cumin powder until the bell pepper is crisp-tender, about 3 minutes. Season with salt to taste, and stir into the cooked oat pilaf. Garnish with ½ cup chopped toasted hazelnuts.

Saffron Risotto with White-Wine Clams and Peas

Despite my tireless pursuit of starches, I have found making brown rice risotto prohibitively time-consuming. While the rewards are out of this world, I prefer to stay in this world and eat something else—except maybe every three years or so. That is, until I tried it one night with parboiled short-grain brown rice. I combine it with a quick-cooking trick, adding lots of liquid at the start, which reduces